On July 8, 2000, Dennis Setzer was involved in a crash at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway during the Thatlook.com 200 Truck Series.

20 years later, the clip of said incident has been circulating on X, which made Brad Keselowski reflect on his NASCAR inspiration.

Brad Keselowski was relieved by the fact that Setzer walked away with only a broken shoulder, given the damage to the truck.

He said, "I wasn't at the race, but my brother Brian and I got the job of cutting this truck up when it got back to Michigan. I’ve never seen so much damage to the center section and seat area with the driver being ok.”

"Dennis was so tough; he raced the next week all bruised up. He is/was the guy I looked up to the most at this time as a racer." Keselowski said.

The RFK Racing co-owner noted Setzer’s resilience, as he continued racing the next weekend despite the injuries from his crash. Not just this, Brad Keselowski and his brother had the duty of cutting up Setzer's battered car.

The incident took place during the 15th race of the 2000 NASCAR season and the fifth running of the 200-lap event.

Setzer blew a tire, resulting in his car hitting the impact wall. He then came down the track and was hit by Jack Sprague and Bob Morgan.

Setzer was among the nine racers involved in a crash that day. The race was eventually won by Kurt Busch, followed by Mike Wallace, Randy Tolsma, Greg Biffle, and Andy Houston.

The Unfortunate NASCAR Season of 2000

While the life of a person in any form of motorsport may appear appealing to a viewer, the brutal truth is that the drivers and racers are actually risking their lives.

What happened with Dennis Setzer wasn't an isolated incident of that NASCAR season.

Just a day before Setzer’s incident, on 7th July 2000, Kenny Irwin Jr. passed away after he crashed head-on into the wall, causing his car to turn onto its side and roof.

Two months earlier, on May 12, 2000, Adam Petty passed away after lap 3 of New Hampshire Motor Speedway, hitting the wall at high speed after his accelerator got stuck.

The same year, on 14 October 2000, Tony Roper passed away from injuries he sustained in a crash during the O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway.

In 2001, Dale Earnhardt Sr. also lost his life at the Daytona 500 after colliding with Sterling Marlin, which resulted in him losing traction and hitting the wall.

Unfortunately, within a span of 8 months from 2000 to 2001, all these legendary racers passed away because of basilar skull fractures.

However, these incidents were a huge wake-up call for change in NASCAR's safety protocols, and the evolution can definitely be seen today in modern NASCAR.

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi